The Integration Task Group
The Integration Task Group, chaired by Martin Neilson, has been tasked with defining an integrated project, demonstrating the business case for integration and finding ways for successful promotion. The origin of the group was a report to government that £2.8bn/year was wasted on construction projects through not operating integrated teams.
The group has representatives from across the industry, including government, and it co-opts expertise where necessary. It has been meeting since April 2007 and has produced an excellent intermediate report “Profiting from Integration” which is available from www.strategicforum.org/pdf/ITGReport120308.pdf
The group is now concentrating on five areas where it believes its efforts will make the most impact on promoting integration within the industry. These are:
Procurements and Contracts
- Promoting “Selecting the Team”, an advice note on assembling an integrated team (www.cic.org.uk/services/selectingtheteam.pdf).
- Production of a series of Plain English guides to encourage clients throughout a supply chain to adopt best practice.
- Review and promotion of the “Integration Toolkit”, an excellent tool to promote working in an integrated manner (www.strategicforum.org.uk/sfctoolkit2/home/home.html).
Training and Coaching
- Seeking ways to encourage integration across all disciplines to maximise knowledge available to a project through better training and coaching.
Legal Reform
- Promotion of the ACE campaign to enable proportionate liability and liability caps on construction contracts.
The Business Case
- Production of a method to measure the degree of integration on a project and the success of integration within that project.
- Following and mentoring ten projects nationally that are sponsored by BERR and managed by Constructing Excellence, of which The Minster is one.
Promotion
- Production of a marketing plan and campaign.
- Identification of industry leaders to promote the benefits.
Advice or comments on any of these areas can be sent direct to Mark Wakeford of Stepnell, who is the Construction Confederation’s representative of this group, at mark.wakeford@stepnell.co.uk